Elf And Man
by S0cially Disadvantaged
Summary: "The dawn was fast approaching, and the Elf had time to reflect on things. What happens when a talk with Strider leads into unexplored territory?" {By Lindsay}


I stood quietly on a hill, watching the sun slowly rise over the horizon. The red color no longer surprised me, nor did it concern me too much. I took a seat upon a large rock, and I glanced to the ground to the right of me. There were five small figures sleeping there, none would wake for several hours, one shorter than the others. Four Hobbits and a Dwarf were my companions, along with one other. The final member of this odd group was a Man. I, to top all this off was an Elf. Together, we followed one of the Hobbits, Frodo Baggins, as the Fellowship of the Ring. Our mission was to destroy the Ring of Power, though I will admit I did not have all that much faith that we would succeed at times. The Man, Strider as I often called him, that being one of his various nicknames, was gone at the moment, though I wasn't too worried about him. He knew how to handle himself, being a Ranger and such, and he was only in the forest. We had shared a lot, Aragorn and I. The countless battles we had held status in over that one piece of jewelry was enough to have bound us, but there were jokes we shared that the Hobbits would not understand. Honestly, he was one of the few amongst this group who could make me smile, let alone chuckle. He trusted me too, and I he. You could say that I even, well, began to get more attached to him than I should have. Far aside from he and I being of the same gender, there was another problem- Arwen. Arwen was a pretty girl, I won't argue with that, and I suppose I should not have hated her as I did, since she was of Elvin blood as I was. However, it was to her that Aragorn had pledged his heart, and seeing them together, or hearing one speak of the other burned into me. I said nothing, though, but Strider was vigilant, and he noticed how I tended to become cold in the presence of his lover. Several times, he asked me about it, but I waved it off as nothing. Last time, when she had set forth to Valinor, I had gone hunting as soon as I had heard her approaching. I didn't want to face her. My musings had led me astray from my task tonight- to protect the Hobbits, Frodo especially, and Gimli, the dwarf. However, as soon as my sharp hearing picked up the sound of approaching footsteps, I was brought crashing back to reality, and my bow was soon in my hand, an arrow cocked, taut, and ready to be fired. Just as I was preparing to shout a threat into the shadows, a voice came. "At ease, Legolas, at ease." A slight chuckle accompanied these words, and I knew the tone. Quietly, a little ashamed to have been caught so paranoid, I lowered the bow, replacing the arrow in my quiver and setting the wood on the ground. There was another chuckle as a man, the Ranger, actually, came from the shadows and walked to me, putting a hand on my shoulder as though to reassure me that being overly cautious was better than not being cautious enough, especially since Dark Riders were everywhere. "I suppose I'm getting a slight bit jumpy," I muttered quietly, looking up at the older male, though he simply shrugged. I then looked up at this Man, smiling just a touch at seeing him giving me a slight smile. He was about as tall as I was, perhaps a sight bit taller, and his dark eyes looked into mine softly. His hair fell over his shoulders, and it was slightly wild, as dark a chocolate color as those eyes. He looked rather rugged, and he was dressed in fairly plain clothes. At his side was a sword. How he cherished that weapon on the battlefield. He preferred close combat just as much as I prefer long ranged attacks. That was the main difference between us, besides our race. One was a learned swordsman, and the other was a skilled archer. Together, that was a very deadly combination to anger. "You've been jumpy for awhile now," Aragorn muttered to me, looking into my eyes seriously. "That isn't like an Elf, so tell me what's troubling you." I shook my head, looking away from him slightly. I was not going to tell him. No. there were many miles left to travel, and I daresay that traveling them in uneasy silence between he and I would have been unbearable. For that reason, he could never know the kind of dreams that haunted me at night, the kind that woke me from my sleep. "Nightmares," I muttered under my breath as he gave my shoulder a small squeeze with his larger hand. He didn't look satisfied with this answer, so he pressed me for more knowledge, first assuring me that he truly did want to know. Quietly, he pried for what I would not tell him about my dreams. "About the Ring?" There was a long pause. I wanted to lie, wanted to agree with that, wanted to let him dismiss it as nothing but concerns of the Ring, but something within me kept me from that. I didn't want to lie to Aragorn. Of all the Fellowship, only he could ever persuade an honest answer from me when I was set on not giving one. "About losing you," I whispered quietly, shaking my head, pulling from his grasp and turning away, sure he'd saunter out into the forest and not return for hours, maybe days. When he did return, I knew, he would be silent for the most part, or else cold to me. Then, his voice caught my ear. "Legolas," he paused, seeming to be sure that I heard him, so I cocked my head a little to make it plain I had heard my name, "turn around." Carefully, expecting a blow from the larger male, I turned to face him. However, he moved forward, right infront of me, just looking at me. Before I could really tell what was happening, I felt a rough-textured, though gentle with the touch, hand on my chin, lifting my head just a little, forcing my eyes to meet those of the Man. He moved forward, and, stunning me greatly, I felt his lips against mine. He stayed that way for a moment, then he pulled away, just watching me, seeming to expect a similar reaction from me as I had imagined for him. I was silent for a moment. "What about. Arwen.?" I managed to ask, aware of the creeping flush in my cheeks, they getting warm as the color filled them. Aragorn sighed at this, and I saw Arwen's necklace, a present from her to he, in his pocket, a bit of the chain only just visible. He paused a moment, seeming to be thinking how to tell me something, and then he spoke to me, his voice quiet, reserved as ever, seeming rather calm. "I've had doubts for quite awhile," he muttered to me, not approaching me again just yet, "if she was truly the one I was meant to be with. She won't come back from Valinor, you and I know it, and I suppose it isn't true what they say about absence making the heart grow fonder. You and I have been through more together than she could ever dream of, and she will come and help me in a moment of crisis, yes, but you're the one who is there all the time." He then met my eyes, continuing quite seriously, "If you meant something else by your comment before, then forget all that's happened. If it at all disturbs you." I didn't let him finish. Before he could, I had moved forward to him, and my lips soon were against him quite contently, I not pulling away. Just when I was going to, I felt strong, sturdy arms wrap around me and tug me closer against a broad chest. Then I felt those warm lips of Strider's returning the embrace I had, this time, initiated. It was a good several minutes before we broke apart, and Strider was giving me a small smile when I looked at him, though I could have laughed at the vaguely pink color in his cheeks. However, I saw him silently chuckle, and I was aware that my own face was probably coated in a blush, however light. "Get some rest," the Ranger then muttered to me, keeping his arms around me until he was done, releasing me then. "You haven't slept well in days, perhaps now you can." I nodded a little, soon sitting on the ground not too far away. However, I found that there was one more thing I wanted still. "We'll be awake before the others, we always are," I muttered quietly, looking at him before I went on. "Will you lay down with me?" Aragorn gave a nod, soon sitting with me before he lay down in the grass. I soon shut my eyes as I slid to lie beside him, and I allowed my head to rest on his firm chest, over his heart as those protective arms slid around me before my eyes shut, and everything went peacefully dark. 


End file.
